Stephen Morris

Where I used to live there were 2 grammer schools. One cost £5k a year, the other was free but harder to get into. I passed the test for the expensive one, but missed out on the free one by 1 mark. I wish I'd studied harder and passed that test. The thing is, I'd probably be a different person, different friends, bit of a toff, wouldn't have ridden trials - well not unless I met somebody else who was into it. Red Dwarf is my favourite programme, and yeah you're right, you'll mess around with causality and all that nonsense.

Barcelona and Madrid are apparently very good for trials. If you can be bothered to pay all that money and spend all that time at the airport then go for it, I'd rather stay at home myself.

Over the final few months of 2004 I had a lot of riders asking me about doing competitions next year (2005). For a street rider who has never ridden natural before, competing in your first comp is not only a bit nerve-racking, but it's also a very different experience from say, going on a big London ride. No matter how many photos you see of competitions, nothing can really prepare you for the comp itself. That's why I've put together some information about the EBTC in particular, which should serve useful for riders interested in competing this season. I apologise if this seems a little condescending, but I know that many riders are completely in the dark as to how competitions work, so I may as well include all the information I can. Street vs Natural - The differences Riding over natural terrain is completely different to street, I would presume you know that already. The obstacles you come across in an urban environment are all pretty much "straight". By that, I mean, the brick wall is straight, it has corners, as things go it's pretty easy to ride. The same goes for benches and rails which compared to a rotton tree trunk that could fall apart when you land on it, are pretty easy to ride. Street riders begin to take this easy terrain for granted. We come to expect every obstacle to have a long, flat concrete run up, but in natural trials this is isn't the case. At a competition don't expect any run up, and if there is one it will probably be muddy and covered in small roots and rocks. Due to the lack of a run up, you'll find yourself hopping a lot more even just trying to get along a flat slightly bumpy section of ground. "Hang on a minute, all this hopping is tiring me out" I hear you say. Yep, that's why trials events are such a change from riding street, because you suddenly realise that to ride without putting your feet on the floor (see the rules section) requires a lot more energy than most people realise. The main differences between street and natural are the following.: Stability - Lets face it, apart from a bench with a slight bit of flex, or a lose brick here or there, when riding street everything is pretty much solid. At a comp this wont necessarily be the case. Logs may be really wobbly, plus they may even snap after 100 bashguards have ploughed through it. The obstacles - Concrete is really grippy, mud isn't. If it's rained then everything will be wet, and logs, rocks and the ground will be slippery. This means that you should be weary of just throwing youself at obstacles expecting them to be nice and grippy because you'll probably slip off them very quickly. The route - At competitions you can't ride whatever you fancy I'm afraid, you need to enter at a certain level, and ride the route that they set out. Say for example you're riding novice (white route), you need to ride the section set out for you, riding between the white "gates" which are essentially white stakes in the ground, or white bits of paper stapled to a tree. You are allowed to walk through your section before you attempt to ride it, so ask the observer if you're not sure on what lines to take, and try and work out how you will negotiate the section as opposed to getting to the big log, and then deciding what you're going to do. The atmosphere - Whether you're used to riding on your own or with 30 other people every week, the atmosphere at a trials competition is very different from the set of rails in the Tesco car park. For a start, expect at least 40 - 50 riders to turn up. Some of these riders will be wearing lycra body suits. There's nothing wrong with that, but it does come as a little bit of a shock at your first comp. Most people are very friendly, they'll come up to you and ask how well you're doing, Andy Chai may even offer you one of his flapjacks if you're lucky. One important thing to consider is that even if you don't care where you finish, other people will take the competition very seriously. There's nothing wrong with that at all, but what does annoy me, and it probably always will, are the pushy dads who "help" their kids by shouting at them when they fall off. Of course it's nice to have somebody to talk to and help you whilst you're riding, but as far as I'm concerned, the last thing you need when you've fallen off a log into a pile of stinging nettles, is your dad telling you "that's the last time you'll fall over today Simon, you fool!". How competitions work At EBTC, you arrive between 9 and 10am in the competition car park to see about 50 Montys and lots of lycra body suits. These competitions can be all over the place, most are in Essex, but there are also comps in Suffolk, Kent and Surrey in Darsham, Penshurst and Hook Wods respectively. Once you've paid the £9 comp entry fee (different clubs may have different prices) you get given your scorecard, your rider number and some string. The string is to tie your rider number to your bars, NOT to make a nifty bracelet. At 10am, once everybody has arrived trophys will be given out for those who came 1st, 2nd and 3rd at the last comp and the clerk of the course will say a few words regarding where the sections are and how you must behave at this location - it may be somebody's farm, scout camp etc. The sections will all be numbered, and they'll all follow on from one another. If your rider number is 52, then you start at section 2, likewise, if your number is 97, you start on section 7. The last number, decides your starting course, and it spreads all the riders around the competition, and not all on one section. There'll usually be either 2 laps of 10 sections or 3 laps of 8, meaning that you'll ride either 20 or 24 sections in a day. Each section has an observer who watches you ride the sections and scores you on your scorecard. When you get to the section, give the observer your scorecard and they'll call out the rider's name or numbers when it's their turn to ride. Whilst you're waiting for your turn, walk through the section working out what you need to be doing, and checking just how slippery that log is. Once you've completed all the sections, hand in your scorecard and rider number, where you signed in. You may now go home. The results should appear on Biketrialuk.co.uk within a few days, and within a few weeks the results will come through the post along with information on the next competition. What membership/licences do I need To ride a competition you'll need an ACU licence and EBTC membership. They cost £10 each for a year so that's £20 altogether. To get one speak to Brian Matthews on 01277 210284. He'll send you the forms for both the ACU and the EBTC memberships. Fill them out including all the checks and photos that are required and send them back to Brian. These memberships expire on 31st December 2005 and therefore allow you to compete for an entire year. Each competition costs £9 which I presume covers the hiring of the venue as well as insurance and the likes. The money also pays for the exciting trophies that YOU could be winning soon! The ACU licence may take a while to arrive, but so long as they know you've applied for it and you have your EBTC licence then you should be able to ride. Verify this with Brain Metthews though. The rules - In a trials competition, the winner is the person who finishes with the least amount of dabs, a bit like golf when the winner is the player with the least shots. A dab is the name for the penalty point given to you when you put your foot on the floor, or lean against something. Getting through a section without dabs is known as "cleaning" the section and doing so means you will receive no penalty points. The most dabs you can get in a section is 5. When you have 5 dabs then you have failed the section. If you put both feet down, or fall off you will be given an instant fail, and therefore 5 dabs. You will given a very in depth version of these rules when you reply. Biketrialukshould also have a comprehensive guide to the rules there. What level shall I ride at - At club competitions there are 4 different levels: novice (white), inter (blue), expert (red) and elite (yellow). The novice category is only open to 20" riders, the rest can be ridden on a mod or a stock. If you're a novice rider on a stock, you may enter "out of class" which means you get to ride the courses and get marked, but you're not essentially competing. If your a beginner then of course ride novice. One thing to consider is the difference between street and natural. I'm pretty proficient when it comes to street. If there was a street comp then I might enter as expert, or I would certainly expect to do well in the intermediete level. I've been riding for 5 years, but I still compete at inter level at comps, because I'm shit at natural. It may also interest you to know that I usually finish very badly too. Speak to people you know who do comps and ask them what level you think you should ride at. If you do your first comp in novice and win, then you can move up to inter for the next one. But if you do inter and lose, then you can't move down. It's a good idea to enter one level below your street standards, because if you're brilliant at street but terrible at natural, you don't want to be in the same class as people who are great at natural. Stephen, please tell us more... Okay then, as you ask so nicely. Take a bag with you. Fill the bag with food, drink, tools, spare bits and pieces. Bring your helmet, gloves and a jacket incase it rains. For an essex comp your bike doesn't have to have gears, it just needs to be a stock or a mod. If it's been raining, or it rains then the course will be wet. This could mean that the course is harder, or it could mean that the comp is now practically unridable, depending on how much it has rained. I personally hate it when it's been raining, each competition becomes a contest of who has the best brakes, rather than who is the best rider. This season I'll be entering all the Hampshire and Essex comps, but only in the Summer. Some people may think that's against the point, but I believe trials is all about having fun, and if you don't like comps in the Winter, then don't go to them. I hope this helps. If you feel I've missed any major topics, or you'd like to ask a question or add to this post then go for it. Stephen.

When Jake got San Andreas he lent me Vice City which I've been playing loads, but I've yet to complete a mission yet - I'm really shit.

From what I read in the first post I didn't think it was ever going to be a competition? Looks like an indoor location has been found, and it will be full of obstacles put into sections, but can be moved about as and when required. Sounds like a great idea to me, I'd certainly come along if I lived a lot close to North Wales :S

Related Trials Chat post is here: http://www.trials-forum.co.uk/forum/index....opic=42662&st=0

Bollocks :o I can't wait, will Adam get banned?

Right, it's taken me ages to do this (I did it in paint!) but it's finally done. The definitive, 100% correct guide to those stupid little blue dots. At the time of writing Tartridge is the forum's highest poster. He has single-handedly pushed the boundaries of what is possible in this forum and we owe him a lot of respect. Adam currently has 6038 posts, and I'm not sure what happens when he gets to 10,000... maybe he'll get another dot. Tom or Danny probably know.

Agreed, plus I don't think my best mate wants me posting photos of his mum on the Internet. If you want to see Mrs Rodriguez then you'll have to buy the porno video like everybody else.

← Martin don't take this the wrong way or anything... your sister is a good looking lass, but she's completely overshadowed by the beauty behind her on the right - yum yum! :-

A man running, then running up the walls, it's pretty crazy! A moving avatar gets bonus points - 8/10

Comp 24 for the rear is perfect for street or natural, wet or dry as far as I'm concerned.

Here's my Leeson, I think it finally looks fairly nice. Stephen :S

Because for us it works, so we're not bitter.

Quality Video - I was expecting a foam pit, but nope a proper backflip - nice one :(